Up until a few years ago I had never gotten on a rollercoaster. I had nothing against them, to be fair. I just hadn't had the opportunity and my idea of a good time isn't necessarily to go to theme parks or anything like that. (You're talking to someone who has still never been to Disney World.) Well, I did get the opportunity, finally, and went to Six Flags. It was... okay? It was a decent time. I did enjoy myself and boarded some rides more than once. But it's not an experience I'm exactly running to repeat.
After Redditor Mizu3 asked the online community, "What are common things you've never done?" people told us about their own experiences... or lack thereof.
"I've never had..."
I've never had (as my parents put it) a 'real' job -- that is, one where you turn up at a certain time at a certain place, you work for a certain number of hours for someone who is recognizably your boss, and then you get a paycheck at the end of it. (I've done temp work on occasion, but never for long enough to learn how the whole 'office politics' thing is supposed to work.)
I started freelancing straight out of university, and I just never stopped. God forbid I ever do need to get a more stable job, because my CV is f*****.
"But for me..."
I've never made it through one public speaking opportunity -- whether speaking to 3 colleagues in a meeting or delivering a wedding toast to hundreds of people -- where my throat hasn't closed up with fear after 30 seconds or so. Everyone I know can stand up and talk to groups of family, friends, colleagues, etc and just be LOOKED at by all of them. But for me, no matter who they are or how many, my anxiety takes over and I can't get the words out. Maybe someday.
"It's weird because..."
Built a snowman.
It's weird because I live in Canada but when I was a wee kiddo all my elementary schools had this rule about picking up snow. So no snowballs. No snowforts. No snowmen. We were however allowed to roll snowballs along the ground but not to pick them up.
So I've never built a snowman.
"I've always been in relationships..."
Never had a one night stand. I've always been in relationships and never had that experience.
"I can still remember..."
Learned how to swim. I was in lessons when I was around 3 or 4 years old. I can still remember seeing my dad in the pool. He had blue swim trunks on. I didn't want to go in. I was hanging onto my mom's legs. The lifeguard took me and tossed me into the pool (this was the 80s). I never went back. Still don't know how to swim.
"I've never..."
I've never eaten an orange because the smell made my sensory processing disorder go crazy and here I am at almost 20, never having had an orange.
"There was no way..."
Never been to Disneyland. Poor families don't have the time or money to travel for expensive leisure vacations.
As a kid, Disneyland may as well have been Mars. There was no way I was ever getting there.
"I always hear people talk about..."
I've never had a crush.
I've had sexual attraction. But no crushing to speak of. I always hear people talk about how it feels disabling and awful if you can't act on it. So I doubt I'm actually missing out on anything good.
"There were a lot of attempts..."
I've never sworn before. I never saw the need for it going through school and it became a joke with my friends. There were a lot of attempts to get me to swear, and it's been so long now that I feel like I'm obligated to keep it going.
"Scream when frightened..."
Scream when frightened or startled. My instinct is to stop breathing for a second and take a swing.
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